Wi-fi locks on houses when borrowers miss a payment can’t be that far in the future, based on this NYTimes article:
Ms. Bolender was three days behind on her monthly car payment. Her lender, C.A.G. Acceptance of Mesa, Ariz., remotely activated a device in her car’s dashboard that prevented her car from starting. Before she could get back on the road, she had to pay more than $389, money she did not have that morning in March.
And for context, Zillow has a nice, digestible post (with pictures) in which they look at subprime mortgages’ return:
Similarly, premiums charged to subprime borrowers remain higher than in 2011 and 2012, but have been mostly flat in recent months (chart below). For a 30-year fixed rate purchase mortgage, upper-tier subprime borrowers pay 70 more basis points while lower-tier subprime borrowers pay 120 more basis points.
Yikes! Could you imagine the lawsuit that will come if a creditor shuts down a car while on the highway and there is an accident? I can see it coming. It is not a bad idea in principle, but there should be a little more of a window than 3 days plus some advance notice that the vehicle will be shut off on such a such date at this time. Though I can’t see this as happening on a home. A person has the legal right to shelter.